At that time, Mr. Martín had already created Promociones y Urbanizaciones Martín, S.A. (Martinsa), with very moderate activity and growth. Perhaps that is why he continued to accumulate various companies: Jafemafe, Femaral, Almarfe, Fercler, Premier Martinsa (until recently called Martinsa Norte), Inmobiliaria Marplus and FT Castellana Consultores Inmobiliarios. Many of them were nothing more (and nothing less) than mere property companies, but others were dedicated to what really made him great: land management in the midst of the rezoning and credit fiasco. His influences, his complicity with Florentino Pérez and FCC, did the rest.. In the face of accusations of influence peddling, Fernando Martín repeated incessantly: “The business is in unconsolidated land. And that's where imagination and intuition come into play”. Indeed, we sensed and imagined how he was making dream capital gains, one after the other. He even sat in the dock but was acquitted due to the well-known lack of evidence. At the time, he boasted that he was able to get a finalist floor in less than 50 days... It's no use.
Until a couple of years ago alone, he accumulated more than 550 million euros in stock market assets, achieving capital gains of up to 120 million euros in just one year. Sacyr Vallehermoso. But it is of no use that at the beginning of the 21st century his business take-off was meteoric, nor that in 2006 he bought Fadesa and created Martinsa-Fadesa with a presence in 14 countries. The feet of this giant were made of clay. Of a mud built on a real estate bubble and a banking credit lust, which burst months ago.
Mr. Fernando Martín, as you would say my admired Groucho Marx, «the game is over«. But for whom? Unfortunately, this is the million-dollar question. The game is over For the shareholders who trusted you, for the families who bought their flats that you will never finish building, for the shareholders of the banks who trusted you, and we could go on with the list of despair until we bleed to death. But what about you, Mr Martin? For you, only one of your toys is finished, the one that made the most noise, the one that amused you the most and even, who knows, the one that made you the most money. But what about your diversified businesses? Those that are known (3% of Unión Fenosa, 1% of Telefónica, 1% of BBVA, 1% of BSCH, etc.), those that only your friends know, and above all those that are not known. He is known to have more than significant holdings in distribution companies (supermarkets), and seats on a wide range of boards of directors. Mere tips of the iceberg.
I am not criticising him for having diversified his assets at all. Not to have done so would have been reckless and naïve on his part (even Bañuelos did so). But it is not credible that he did not see the danger of not diversifying Martinsa-Fadesa itself at the height of the bubble. Sorry Fernando Martín, nor were the re-qualification bucks repeated by chance, nor was their foresight of the bursting of the bubble so short-sighted.. He simply used one of his tools, one of his toys, until it stopped working. The current real estate and, above all, credit scenario no longer compensates him for his efforts, and not only did he do nothing to avoid bankruptcy, but I fear that it is an end designed and adapted to the future plans he has for his assets. And worst of all, the size of Martinsa-Fadesa makes the Government tremble and force it to buy land from you to pay your debts, thus extending the collateral damage caused by you to immoral extremes.
Perhaps this is what he meant when he spoke of «imagination and intuition». To be a good businessman it is not enough to make a company big and influential, you also have to make it solid, strong, agile, indestructible. Something similar to what you have done with your personal assets. This is the only way to be an entrepreneur in capital letters. You are not, because the only thing you have consolidated is your own fortune. And that is useless without a minimum of moral and human qualities.
Wealth without Ethics is despicable. This from a Family Office where we see many ways of amassing fortunes, Mr. Fernando Martín.